"Maturing is realizing Khabib doesn’t take risks" - Fans debate whether Khabib Nurmagomedov could've become a two-division UFC champion
MMA fans have reacted to a hot take on social media that stated Khabib Nurmagomedov could have been a two-division champion if he had faced Tyron Woodley.
Back in 2018, 'The Eagle' won the vacant lightweight title from Al Iaquinta and defended the belt against the returning Conor McGregor in the same year.
Woodley, who was the welterweight champion at the time, successfully defended the 170lb strap against Darren Till and earned a Performance of the Night bonus.
One fan believes that Khabib Nurmagomedov would have had a serious chance at defeating Tyron Woodley if the pair had fought in 2018, when both men were seemingly at their peak:
"Maturing is realising that Khabib Nurmagomedov would have had a great chance at becoming double champion, if he fought Tyron Woodley back in 2018."
would have had a great chance at becoming double champion, if he fought Tyron Woodley 
in 2018 🥇🥇
Maturing is realising that Khabib Nurmagomedov 🇷🇺 would have had a great chance at becoming double champion, if he fought Tyron Woodley 🇺🇸 in 2018 🥇🥇 https://t.co/QKzgOB4ir3
Fans responded to the hot take, believing that Nurmagomedov would never have taken the fight because he didn't take risks throughout his career:
"Maturing is realizing Khabib doesn't take risks"
@NerdGv4 maturing is realizing khabib doesn’t take risks
Twitter user @HushBulla is confident the fight would have been a close contest but believes fans often forget how great Woodley was during his title reign:
"Mhmmmmmmmmm I’d give him a decent chance but people are quick to forget just how elite prime woodley was. Pre Usman fight, he was arguably the second greatest 170er to ever live. Woodley was also very big for 170. That fight at their peak(s) is very competitive."
@NerdGv4 Mhmmmmmmmmm I’d give him a decent chance but people are quick to forget just how elite prime woodley was. Pre Usman fight, he was arguably the second greatest 170er to ever live. Woodley was also very big for 170. That fight at their peak(s) is very competitive
Check out more fan reactions below:
@MayurRulez76 @NerdGv4 Actually laughable.. khabib played safe..that's it. He wouldn't have gone up a wight class for sure
@NerdGv4 RDA actually had the balls to fight at 170 in the UFC unlike Khabib when most his pre UFC fights were at 170. He would've beat up TWood when he was champ. Tyron could never handle pressure well.
@NerdGv4 Too bad he wouldn’t even fight old gsp at 170
@NerdGv4 Prime Tyron smashes Khabib
@NerdGv4 Could've been an interesting fight , shame kabibi was scared ( probs knew he would lose tho )
@NerdGv4 Nope. Woodley would’ve stuffed his takedowns and chopped at his legs. Khabib’s power isn’t a threat for Woodley, like Usman, Burns and Vicente’s power was.
@NerdGv4 Tyron was unstoppable then. Don't confuse him with the jake paul opponent he became he was dangerous as fuck.
@NerdGv4 Maturing is realizing Khabib was too scared for his 0 to move up to welterweight
@NerdGv4 Not sure that’s maturing, but it’s an interesting thought
@NerdGv4 Anything past September 2018, maybe.
Any time before then, please. Woodley was way to strong and explosive for the little Dagestani. Why do you think Khabib never dared step up?
@NerdGv4 yeah, the way Usman took him down, Khabib would have ease, standing up tho idk
@NerdGv4 coulda ,woulda , shoulda.... dude went away after three title fights
Coach Javier Mendez recalls training Khabib Nurmagomedov in his early days
Javier Mendez recalled when he first began training Khabib Nurmagomedov at the American Kickboxing Academy (AKA) back in 2012.
Both Mendez and Nurmagomedov share a deep bond that has been built through their success in the octagon and a 10-year friendship. 'The Eagle' has credited much of his success in MMA to Mendez and his team.
Mendez's reminiscing comes after Nurmagomedov released a short video on his YouTube channel. The video is a new series that will deep-dive into the Russian's life, including his life outside of MMA, his career, retirement and what he still wants to achieve in his life.
In an interview from the video, Javier Mendez revealed that he knew that the 33-year-old was going to be a special fighter from the moment they met:
''When I first met Khabib, I sensed greatness, but I wasn't 100% sure of how far he would go because I didn't think he listened well. Because I used to tell him relax, relax and he would go harder... It wasn't until a few fights, or maybe it was a fight later, Khabib goes, 'Coach, I didn't understand when you used to say to relax. I thought you meant going harder.'''
Check out the video here: